Washington, D.C. June 26, 1997 – The Portrait Monument of Lucretia Mott, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony, the three women who initiated and then led the battle to enfranchise half our population, was finally honored today during a Congressional ceremony in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda hosted by Sen. John Warner (R-VA) and Rep. Constance Morella (R-MD).

“Now that the statue has been transported from the Crypt, which held it for so long, let this be more than a politically correct gesture, but instead let this herald a new Renaissance for our nation,” said Senator Warner. “A time of reconciliation, not only for budgets, but race, gender and spirit. Let this statue and today’s celebration signal that we are a people who remember that the Seal of our nation E. Pluribus Unum stands for: Out of Many – One.”

House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who broke away from budget reconciliation meetings to participate in the ceremony said, “I hope that when citizens, particularly younger citizens, come to this particular statue they will say, ‘what questions will I face in my lifetime that are worthy of the dedication, courage and persistence that these women had.’”

To the tens of thousands of citizens from across the country who fought in a four-year struggle to see the statue moved out of the Capitol basement, where it stood for 76 years, the elevation of the statue represents the profound contributions by women that have been glossed over and left out of history.